1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an integral microphone and speaker configuration type communication apparatus suitable for use for example when a plurality of conference participants in two conference rooms hold a conference by voice. More particularly, the present invention relates to a communication apparatus, a conference apparatus and an imaging-condition adjustment method, wherein a microphone using a speaker is correctly selected, preferably, a voice authentication is further carried out, and then an area (region or space) positioned the microphone correctly selected and voice-authenticated can be imaged.
2. Description of the Related Art
A TV conference system has been used to enable conference participants in two conference rooms at distant locations to hold a conference. A TV conference system captures images of the conference participants in the conference rooms by imaging means, picks up their voices by microphones, sends the images captured by the imaging means and the voices picked up by the microphones through a communication channel, displays the captured images on display units of television receivers of the conference rooms of the other parties, and outputs the picked up voices from speakers.
In such a TV conference system, it suffers from the disadvantage that in each conference room, it is difficult to pick up the voices of the speaking parties at positions distant from the imaging means and the microphones. As a means for dealing with this, sometimes a microphone is provided for each conference participant. Further, it also suffers from the disadvantage that the voices output from the speakers of the television receivers are hard for conference participants at positions distant from the speakers to hear.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2003-87887 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2003-87890 disclose, in addition to a usual TV conference system providing video and audio for TV conferences in conference rooms at distant locations, a voice input/output system integrally configured by microphones and speakers having the advantages that the voices of conference participants in the conference rooms of the other parties can be clearly heard from the speakers and there is little effect from noise in the individual conference rooms or the load of echo cancellers is light.
The voice input/output systems disclosed in the above Publications are utilized as means for supplementing a TV conference system for providing video and audio.